An X-Ray Surprise! When Black Holes Stop Eating, Galaxies Fade Away
Forbes – Dec. 5
Most large galaxies are illuminated by billions of stars, but some cosmic monstrosities have an even greater source of light: an active, supermassive, feeding black hole … The bright emissions extending past the edge of the galaxies are evidence of prior AGN activity, but the central black holes are too dim now. Image credit: NASA / ESA / W. Keel, University of Alabama.
Is the drought finally over?
WVUA 23 (Tuscaloosa) – Dec. 5
After being without rain for sixty-plus days, we’re finally receiving that much needed water. The question now, was it enough to end the approximate three-month drought that Alabama experienced? We spoke with a global hydrology expert at The University of Alabama for the answer.
Expect the unexpected, say college disaster prep officials
Associated Press – Dec. 5
When Jefferson Community College was making plans to build its first residence hall, there was one must-have for President Carole McCoy: generators for backup if the power went out. With her campus in Watertown, New York in the bulls-eye of more than 100 inches of snow each year, she knew students might get stuck. They wouldn’t be cold and hungry … “Expect the unexpected, basically …. Don’t think that things can’t happen,” said Donald Keith, emergency preparedness director at the University of Alabama, where a 2011 tornado just missed a direct hit but laid bare, among other details, the need for a system to accept and distribute donations of money and supplies offered by well-wishers.
NBC 12 (Montgomery) – Dec. 5
CBS Dallas-Ft. Worth – Dec. 5
ABC 2 (Green Bay, Wisconsin) – Dec. 5
Statewide burn ban lifted
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 5
Recent rains have prompted Gov. Robert Bentley to lift the statewide burn ban that has been in effect since early November. Bentley and Interim State Forester Gary Cole on Monday rescinded the statewide Drought Emergency “No Burn” Order. Officials with the Alabama Forestry Commission said the state has received enough rainfall over the last few days to reduce the threat of dangerous wildfires … This reflects the modeling conducted by earlier this year by a team of UA researchers including Sagy Cohen, a University of Alabama assistant professor of geography who specializes in global hydrology. Cohen said that data also indicated that drought-like conditions could extend throughout the winter.
William Christenberry kept time with Hale County images
Al.com – Dec. 5
Celebrated artist William Christenberry passed away last week after an extended illness. A native of Tuscaloosa, he spent childhood summers on family homesteads in Hale County. His studies at The University of Alabama led him to studies in art, where he developed his painting practice under the tutelage of dedicated faculty in the new art department. (By William Dooley, an artist who serves as director for the Sarah Moody Gallery of Art, Department of Art and Art History at The University of Alabama.)
Sweet Briar College alumni group hosting lecture series
Northside Neighbor – Dec. 5
The Sweet Briar College Atlanta Alumnae Club’s Living Room Learning lecture series for 2017, titled “Marching Through 20th Century History: The Post-War World 1945-50,” will take place Jan. 11 through Feb. 22 at the Atlanta History Center’s McElreath Hall in Buckhead. . . . Jan. 18: “Year Zero: The European Diaspora,” by Janek Wasserman, Ph.D., history professor at the University of Alabama.